Automotive Marketing Professional Community Blogs

• Don't Miss! Four Changes for Agencies & Dealers - Live Webinar
  This Fourth of July marks a turning point for the car industry. This Fourth of July marks a turning point for the car industry. Basic paid search and social campaigns won’t be enough to convince buyers to go to your dealership instead of the closest competitor. Dealers have embraced digital advertising tactics, raising the bar across the entire industry. To […]
  Jim Flint
• PureCars' Automotive Marketing Platform Receives Digital Advertising Certification For The Honda Dealer Program
  Leading Digital Advertising Platform Helping Auto Dealers Drive Consumer Demand From COVID-19 ATLANTA, July 1, 2020 -- PureCars, a leading provider of digital marketing and advertising insights for automotive dealers, today announced it has been certified as one of the official providers of digital advertising for the Honda HDCX Program. PureCars is now cert […]
  John Sternal
• 5 Tips to Train and Retain Salespeople
  How well do you retain sales staff?  The average annual turnover rate for salespeople in our business is 67 percent, according to Automotive News.   That’s an alarming statistic when you consider it can cost upwards of $10,000 to replace one salesperson. This figure accounts for recruiting fees, on-boarding costs and potential lost revenue from missed deals. […]
  Bill Wittenmyer
• Enjoy the Evolution: COVID-19's Change
  The way we purchase and service vehicles may never be the same due to COVID-19. However, in the stores I visit, it seems there’s more of an evolution than a revolution going on. Enjoy the evolution.  The staff is down. Inventory is tight. Shoppers are buyers. Contactless sales deliveries ARE up. But only marginally. Be thankful we aren’t in a revolution and […]
  Jim Flint
• Dodge Scores First Detroit Quality Score Win in 34 Years on J.D. Power Study
  Detroit automakers dominated J.D. Power’s marquee study of new-vehicle quality for the first time, with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV’s Dodge becoming the first domestic brand to lead the rankings in 34 years.         Dodge and Kia Motors Corp.’s namesake brand tied for first place with consumers reporting the fewest problems with their vehicles in J.D. Power […]
  Ralph Paglia
• Dealership Managers: 2 Ways To Limit Distraction And (Actually) Get Work Done
  2 Ways To Limit Distractions And Get Your High Priority Work Done... Opportunities to learn are all around you. From every misstep you take, to every negative encounter or hard day at work, lessons abound. Each moment of friction carries with it something to be gained. Take my life at this moment, for instance. I work from home. And, normally, it’s a pretty […]
  Ralph Paglia
• Used Cars: The Wild Ride that Could
  As hard as we try to increase recall completions, there always seems to be a bump in the road. We may soon be in for a pretty big one from the used-car market and there are plenty of signs pointing to this having a major effect on both dealerships and consumers.   According to a recent article in Automotive News, here are four ways the scenario could play ou […]
  Dan Beres
• NBCUniversal And Sky Establish One Platform Global Advertising
  NBCUniversal And Sky Set Leadership For One Platform Global Advertising and Partnerships NBCUniversal and Sky have set the leadership team for their One Platform Global Advertising & Partnerships initiative, which was first announced last month. President and Managing Director of Global Advertising & Partnerships KC Sullivan will lead the unified gro […]
  Ralph Paglia
• 10 Steps You Can Take in 10 Minutes to Develop Stronger Google Campaigns
  Red Zone Foreign Countries--aka Negative them Out Eliminate Smart Bidding Move Settings for Display off of Recommended Turn off App Ads Use the same Google My Business login that you use for your My Client Center Establish In-Store Conversion Tracking for Service Purposes Ramp or reduce spending to $100 per car Upload Your Target Audiences--then choose to ex […]
  Jim Flint
• Research Reveals Most Popular Vehicles Used in Movies and TV Shows
  Cars have played a significant role in some of the most famous movies and TV shows of all time and often end up taking center stage. Can you imagine Herbie without the VW Beetle or Back to the Future without the DeLorean? Then there is the "Mad Max" series where the films feature an ever more radical set of off-road modified war wagons... New resea […]
  Ralph Paglia
• Economic Collapse: Myth or Reality
  Economic collapse occurs very quickly without anyone even predicting it. One of the causes of economic collapse is the surprise element of it. For the vast majority of people, it is highly difficult to spot the signs of imminent failure. September 17th, 2008 is the date when the U.S. almost collapsed. During this date, the Reserve Primary Fund broke the buck […]
  Amelia Grant
• PureCars Receives Digital Advertising Certification For The Porsche Dealer Program
  ATLANTA, June 17, 2020  -- PureCars, a leading provider of digital marketing and advertising insights for automotive dealers, today announced it has been certified as an official provider of digital advertising for the Porsche Dealer Program. PureCars is now certified in a total of 14 OEM programs across the U.S.     PureCars' digital advertising insigh […]
  John Sternal
• LEASE CREDIT APPROVAL RATES CLIMB TO 68.6% IN MAY
  Credit Approvals See Significant Rebound from April Rates CINCINNATI, OHIO (June 18, 2020) – Swapalease.com, the nation’s largest car lease marketplace, reports car lease credit applicants registered a 68.6% approval rate in May, a significant increase from the April rate of 63.8%. The +7.6% increase is likely related to an influx of online shoppers who are […]
  John Sternal
• Auto Industry Evolution ACES: Autonomy, Connectivity, Electrification and Shared Mobility.
  You may have already heard of the acronym “ACES” or “CASE” to describe four areas in which technology and innovation are rapidly changing automotive.                                                                                                   Those four areas being, in whichever order put them, autonomy, connectivity, electrification and shared mobility […]
  Ralph Paglia
• Tools For A New Way Of Thinking...
  A Tool...   An object used to extend the ability of an individual to modify features of the surrounding environment. Anthropologists believe the use of tools was an important step in the evolution of mankind. The earliest known use of tools dates back more than 3.4 million years ago. By inventing tools, man was able to accomplish tasks way beyond the abiliti […]
  Barry Neuman
• Should We Always Be Flying For Business Travel?
  “Two roads diverged in a wood and I – I took the one less travelled by.” Robert Frost   Travel in particular, and transportation in general, are undergoing structural change, which gives rise to the questions above that are explored in this blog. Much of this change comes from challenges imposed by COVID-19.  But some come from changes in how companies, thei […]
  Karen Anthony
• Beep Partners with USDOT, AV Industry, and State Transportation Departments for AV Test Initiative
  Beep among initial participants selected to promote the safe development and testing of autonomous vehicles across the United States Beep, an Orlando-based autonomous shuttle service provider, is among 17 initial participants selected by the United States Department of Transportation  (USDOT) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)  fo […]
  John Sternal
• VettX Partners with Recall Masters to Identify Vehicles with Dangerous Recalls on its Platform
  Auto dealerships and consumers now have additional layer of transparency to safeguard them from making uninformed acquisitions   Laguna Hills, CA, June 10, 2020 — Recall Masters, Inc., the nation’s leading provider of automotive recall solutions, today announced a partnership with VettX, an automotive industry software provider that enables auto dealerships […]
  Dan Beres
• Staring Contest
  You could argue that digital retailing places your customers in the driver's seat. Maybe. Maybe not. No matter the driver, though, neither party wants to get caught in a staring contest. It truly is a bad look. Keeping your eyes on the road up ahead is far more productive for all involved. At the most basic level, digital retailing, virtual retailing, o […]
  Jim Flint
• A Decade of Change
  To our friends, colleagues, and professional community: It’s not a great time to celebrate our anniversary. Not with so much going on. So many people impacted by forces well beyond their control. The emotional choice and rational choices are confusing, and we all seem to know that things will be different. As a company, Local Search Group established our val […]
  Jim Flint